The City of Champaign is exploring the concept of implementing a stormwater utility fee. Below is a list of frequently asked questions about the stormwater utility fee.
What is a stormwater utility fee?
Like gas, electricity, water, and sewage, stormwater runoff can be managed as a utility and billed as a fee. The fee is based on the concept that every property in a watershed contributes runoff and should support the operation, maintenance, and rehabilitation of the stormwater drainage system in the watershed. The amount of support is based on the amount of runoff the property contributes to the stormwater drainage system. The amount of runoff a property contributes is directly proportional to the amount of impervious area that is on the property.
For the City of Champaign, a stormwater utility fee would be a new fee the City would implement to fund stormwater expenses. Specifically, the revenue from the fee would be used to fund activities that would maintain and improve the infrastructure that transports stormwater in the City plus fund activities that would improve the quality of the stormwater discharged to creeks in the City. Every property owner within the City would be billed for the stormwater utility fee. The stormwater utility fee would be based on the amount of impervious area on the property.
What is stormwater?
Stormwater is the runoff that results from rainfall. As this water flows over construction sites, farm fields, lawns, driveways, parking lots, and streets, it picks up sediment, nutrients, bacteria, metals, pesticides, and other pollutants. Unlike sanitary sewers that go to a treatment plant, most stormwater is discharged directly to local water bodies. Increasing amounts of impervious surfaces in urban areas, such as roof tops, driveways, parking lots, and streets, decreases the ability of the water to soak into the ground, thus increasing the amount of stormwater. More stormwater places more demands on the City’s stormwater infrastructure.
What is an impervious surface?
An impervious suface is a hard surface that does not allow rain to absorb into the ground. Impervious surfaces increase stormwater runoff. Examples of impervious surfaces are roofs, parking lots, streets, sidewalks, and driveways.
What is the current status of the City of Champaign’s stormwater utility fee?
To date, City Council has made no final decision to adopt a stormwater utility fee. Council has provided input on the Expenditure, Revenue, Billing, Credit/Incentive, and Public Outreach plans for the stormwater utility fee. Staff has incorporated Council’s input, and these plans have been finalized. The purpose of the stormwater utility fee plans is to illustrate how the stormwater utility fee could function for the City of Champaign if Council decides to implement a fee. Links to each of these plans are provided below.
What are the next steps for the stormwater utility fee?
As outlined to City Council at the August 23, 2011, Study Session, the next steps are:
- Prepare a “draft” stormwater utility fee ordinance.
- Proceed with the Public Outreach Plan for the stormwater utility fee.
Staff indicated they could complete both of these steps by the end of 2011. Staff plans to update Council on the stormwater utility fee at a Council Study Session in February 2012. At this Study Session, staff will present for Council’s input the “draft” stormwater utility fee ordinance. Staff will also summarize the public input received as a result of the Public Outreach Plan implementation.
Why does the City need a stormwater utility fee?
The City does not have funding to complete any additional stormwater capital improvements for the next twenty years. There are stormwater capital improvement projects that neighborhoods want the City to complete. Instead of cutting other City services or raising taxes, the City Council has decided to consider implementing a stormwater utility fee to help fund these needed neighborhood stormwater capital improvement projects.
Do other communities utilize a stormwater utility fee?
Healey Street Detention Basin, September 2008
The City of Champaign is not alone as far as a stormwater utility fee goes. Several Illinois communities have instituted a stormwater utility fee including Aurora, Bloomington, Highland Park, Moline, Morton, Normal, Rock Island and Rolling Meadows. The City of Urbana is currently evaluating the feasibility of a stormwater utility fee.
Why is the stormwater utility charge a fee and not a tax?
Generally speaking, the purpose of taxes is simply to raise revenue, and there need not be any association or relationship between the source of revenue and the purpose to which it is applied. User fees on the other hand, are a fee for services provided, and have been commonly used to fund all or part of public works programs such as water, sewer, solid waste and stormwater.
The migration of stormwater program costs from taxes to fees over the last 25 years has been challenged in a number of states, and as a result the courts identify three criteria that differentiate a fee from a tax. These criteria are that there exist: 1) a regulatory nature to the fee (it must be adopted by ordinance); 2) a relationship between the fee paid and the services provided (the fee in this case pays for stormwater management related services and programs only and is rationally distributed between ratepayers), and; 3) a voluntary nature to the fee (you can reduce fees by reducing use of the stormwater system or program). This last criterion includes the concept of credit programs to reduce costs.
Has the City of Champaign considered a stormwater utility fee before?
Discussions surrounding the implementation of a stormwater utility fee occurred between 1992 and 2002. Previous considerations were centered around providing additional revenue to fund a storm sewer preventative maintenance program. A brief summary outlines these previous efforts.
